Vienna’s Role in the Release of Spanish Prisoners of War in the Ottoman Empire in the Second Half of the 16th Century

n the second half of the 16th century, both branches of the Habsburg dynasty faced the Ottoman threat and the need for joint actions and cooperation. Most good examples of inner-dynastic cooperation in the communication with the Sultan are found in the field of diplomacy. The permanent diplomatic representation of the Austrian Habsburgs in Constantinople allowed them to act in favor of their Spanish relatives, who at that time preferred not to be officially represented in the Ottoman capital. Vienna’s diplomats insisted on the inclusion of Spain in the numerous peace agreements between the Emperor and the Sultan and secretly negotiated in the name of Philip II. By presenting chosen case studies the current article accentuates another significant example for cooperation, namely the efforts of the Austrian Habsburg diplomats to liberate Spanish subjects from Ottoman captivity. It focuses on Spanish prisoners of war after the defeat at Djerba in 1560. The story of veteran general Don Alvaro de Sande, well documented in archival sources, represents an excellent example for inner-dynastic cooperation, but it also offers valuable information on Early modern captivity and redemption practices (formal and informal) in the Mediterranean context of the intense Habsburg–Ottoman rivalry during the 1560s and 1570s.